Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42582974›Full record

ReviewTranslational lung cancer research2026

Deciphering lung cancer at high resolution: a narrative review of applications of single-cell and spatial transcriptomics sequencing.

Qian Zheng, Peiji Yao, Qiyu Zhu, Jingwei Li, Wenrong Liu, Jiaxuan Wu, Xiaolong Tang, Weiya Wang, Jiadi Gan, Weimin Li and 1 more

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Translational lung cancer research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Qian Zheng *Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0003-1446-6442
Peiji Yao *Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Qiyu Zhu *Department of Urology, Institute of Urology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Jingwei LiDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Wenrong LiuDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Jiaxuan WuDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Xiaolong TangDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Weiya WangDepartment of Pathology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Jiadi GanDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Weimin LiDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Chengdi WangDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, West China Hospital, West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background and Objective: Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Many patients are still facing limited treatment benefit or therapeutic resistance. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) enables high-resolution characterization of cellular states, whereas spatial transcriptomics (ST) preserves tissue architecture and maps gene expression within the tumor microenvironment (TME). This review summarizes recent advances in scRNA-seq and ST in lung cancer and discusses how these technologies have improved our understanding of tumor biology and therapeutic response. Methods: A literature search was conducted in PubMed/MEDLINE for English-language studies published between January 2020 and 2025 using terms related to lung cancer, single-cell sequencing, single-nucleus sequencing, and spatial transcriptomics. Key Content and Findings: Recent studies have used scRNA-seq and ST to characterize immune and stromal compartments, tumor cell heterogeneity, early cancer evolution, metastasis, and treatment-associated remodeling. These findings suggest that lung cancer progression is shaped not only by genetic alterations but also by transcriptional plasticity, spatially organized TME niches, and dynamic interactions between tumor, immune, and stromal cells. Conclusions: scRNA-seq and ST have shifted lung cancer research from bulk tumor profiling toward cellular and spatial ecosystem analysis. However, many proposed biomarkers and therapeutic targets remain exploratory. Further spatial validation, functional experiments, and clinically annotated cohorts are needed before these findings can be translated into routine precision medicine.

Indexed as

Lung cancersingle-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq)spatial transcriptomics sequencing (ST sequencing)tumor heterogeneitytumor microenvironment composition (TME composition)

Identifiers

PMID42582974
PMCPMC13458772

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.